Education Feature: Students raise $500 for charity

December 19, 2007

Courtesy photo Ranchvale Elementary School fourth graders donated more than $500 to help buy presents for children cared for by TeamBuilders Counseling Services. The students collected the money in jars placed throughout the school.

By Gabriel Monte: CNJ staff writer

To Steve Reynolds, Ranchvale Elementary is the little school that could.

In 30 days, the school of about 200 students raised more than $500 to buy presents for children cared for by TeamBuilders Counseling Services.

“They told us that they were going to do it at the end of September,” said Reynolds, a family support specialist. “And we thanked them for it. Knowing that they only had 194 students, we really weren’t expecting a lot. But for them to come up with that much money, it was amazing.”

The fundraiser was conducted by the school’s fourth-grade class, according to fourth-grade teacher Shelly Flygare.

The class of 19 students distributed collection jars throughout the school and counted the money as well, she said.

“The biggest majority of the money came from pennies, nickels and dimes,” Flygare said.

The class started the fundraiser in November.

Flygare said a parent came up with the idea to help raise funds for the counseling service’s Christmas party during a Parent Advisory Committee.

“So we kind of talked about it as a class, what we wanted to do to help others. I brought up that particular idea to them and they all decided that, yeah, they really wanted to do that,” she said.

Reynolds said the money from the school, along with money from other fundraisers, helped buy presents for about 250 children.
“It made Christmas for a lot of kids,” he said.